1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to surgical devices, more specifically, to surgical devices that include a trigger lockout mechanism.
2. Background of Related Art
In the case of a laparoscopic surgical procedure, access to the interior of an abdomen is achieved through narrow tubes or cannulas inserted through a small entrance incision in the skin. Minimally invasive procedures performed elsewhere in the body are often generally referred to as endoscopic procedures. Typically, a tube or cannula device is extended into the patient's body through the entrance incision to provide an access port. The port allows the surgeon to insert a number of different surgical devices therethrough using a trocar and for performing surgical procedures far removed from the incision.
During these procedures, the surgeon may be required to fire one or more surgical fasteners to join two portions of tissue, seal the end of a vessel, apply a surgical mesh to a target site, or to tack down body tissue. The surgeon will often apply multiple fasteners within the surgical site during the procedure. Surgical devices such as clip appliers, tack appliers, and staplers are known in the art for applying a single fastener during each entry to the body cavity.
Some surgical devices are able to apply multiple fasteners in endoscopic or laparoscopic procedures during a single entry into the body cavity. These surgical devices advance and/or form multiple fasteners during a single insertion into the body cavity. Generally, these surgical devices are configured to receive and cooperate with interchangeable fastener magazines to advance and form multiple fasteners during a single entry into a body cavity. One significant design goal is that the surgical device completely fires a single fastener and fully advances any remaining fasteners to a ready-to-fire position with each complete stroke of a trigger of the surgical device.
It is therefore desirable to improve the operation of surgical devices by providing an indication to the user of a firing of an individual fastener, the depletion of the fasteners contained in the magazine, or any other surgical event. It is also desirable to provide a surgical device that fully advances any remaining fasteners, a proper amount in the magazine, with each complete squeeze of a trigger of the surgical device.